About

This blog is about my journey as an english-language poet trying to become more integrated into the literature of my own country.  As an english-speaking South African writer, it is not a simple matter to choose one's influences, as there is so much out there to read, written all over the world. I realised that if I want to write authentically from my own position, I need to connect to the literature of the place I live in.  My approach so far has been to visit local open mic events as regularly as possible, and to begin to read and interact with the work of other South African writers.

In that case, why Dawn-drawn?  

The first poet whose work I loved was the english poet, GM Hopkins, despite the fact that as a teenager, I found his language very difficult to understand.  The blog title is quoted from his poem, The Windhover. What continues to captivate me about his writing is his use of the musical properties of language. I only learned later how carefully wrought his poetic forms were - to me, they always seemed to flow naturally. This is something that I aspire to in my own writing.

Hopkins was also a poet who wrote without hope of a wider audience - something I can identify with.  Part of my motivation in starting this blog was to try to contribute something towards creating conversation and interest among local South African writers. When there isn't much publishing going on, as at present, it's easy to become discouraged!

This blog then, is about engaging and encouraging. To that end, I hope that if you visit, you will engage by leaving a comment!